Power Rangers Movie: Easter Eggs and TV Reference Guide

This article consists of nothing but spoilers for the Power Rangers movie.

It’s been a few years since the Power Rangers movie came out and we’re still in love with it. So much so that we put together a complete guide to all the references, obscure trivia, and other hidden gems in this morphinominal film. 

Power Rangers Heroes

– While it’s only hinted at in the movie, there’s a strong implication that Jason and Kimberly have a thing for each other (the kiss scene in the trailer was ultimately cut). In the original series many fans have speculated that the producers were planning to put Jason and Kimberly together before Tommy showed up. It would make sense, as original show creator Tony Oliver didn’t know they would be adding a Green Ranger until they were well into writing the first batch of episodes.

– When the Rangers are testing out their new powers, they all scramble up the side of a mountain. This is reaching but in episode two of MMPR, “High Five”, Billy scrambles up a mountain to avoid a Putty Patroller. This lead to Trini’s famous “Billy you’re too high!” line. Billy was pretty high (literally, not in the drug sense) when he leapt over that canyon in the movie…

– During the morphing scene Trini is wearing a shirt that reads “1973.” That was the year original Yellow Ranger actress Thuy Trang was born.

– The Rangers gaining super human abilities even outside of their morphed form is not the first time Rangers have had civilian powers. Thanks to the Dino Gems, the Dino Thunder team could turn invisible, move at high speed, and so on. In the film they just seem to enhance their natural abilities, but who knows how the coins will impact them over time.

– Both the original series and this new movie Kimberly is at least a former cheerleader.

– The way the Rangers helmets open up to show their faces strongly resemble the Ninja Storm helmets. Both visors open in nearly the same way.

– While you wouldn’t expect a Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie reference in this film, it actually forms a link between all three of the big screen Power Rangers movies. All three only have one major ground fight sequence where the Rangers are morphed.

In the first movie it was the battle at the construction site. (We aren’t counting the Ninja fight or the morph before the instantly jump into the Zords.) In Turbo it was the final fight in the volcano. Here it’s after the team finally learns to work together.

Power Rangers Movie Cameos

– After the climactic Zord battle, two very familiar faces are prominently featured in the crowd. That’s right, Amy Jo Johnson (Kimberly) and Jason David Frank (Tommy) get their small moment to shine. This also makes them the only two Power Rangers actors to appear in all of the Power Rangers movies.

Power Rangers Post Credits Scene

– We get a tease of a new student in detention, one Tommy Oliver. While Tommy wasn’t known for being sent to detention in the series, he did have a tendency to miss out on fights for a variety of idiotic reasons, like forgetting his communicator or getting caught in a net. The reason for this in the original series was down to his Japanese counterpart not showing up in many fights.

Power Rangers Supporting Cast

– In the original series, Zordon was “an interdimensional being caught in a time warp.” While it isn’t exactly that in the movie, he is still stuck in what it basically the new command center. Unlike the series however, at least Zordon in the movie can zip around the command center as he pleases.

– Zordon’s three rules for being a Ranger are nearly stated word for word in the film with one notable exception. In the series he told the Rangers,

 “First, never use your power for personal gain. Second, never escalate a battle unless Rita forces you. And finally, keep your identity a secret. No one may know that you are a Power Ranger.”

In the movie, he leaves out the “unless Rita forces you” bit, which was probably done to account for the highly likely chance the Rangers will be fighting other big bads besides Rita in future films.

–  Alpha 5’s trademark “Ai-yai-yai!” catchphrase is retained in the movie, although his back-story is more vague. In the series Alpha 5 was created by King Lexian from the planet Edenoi. King Lexian was the grandfather of Dex, better known as the Masked Rider who got his own spin off show. Sadly we don’t know who built Alpha in the movie, but the potential to bring Masked Rider into the movie universe is there!

– We may be reaching here, but did any one else think the two girls bullying Kimberly might be the new Bulk and Skull?  While the casting sheet lists their names as Amanda and Harper, they are a bully duo.

In MMPR Bulk and Skull tormented the Rangers and one of their first victims was actually Kimberly. They were constantly in trouble during Ranger battles, sometimes coming face to face with the monsters. The same thing happens to Amanda and Harper throughout the film, so the connection could have some merit. 

– Throughout the film we meet the Rangers various parents, although none of them resemble the original team’s parents at all. In “Return of an Old Friend, Parts 1 and 2” we met all the team’s parents and they were near carbon copies of their kids. Jason’s parents were meatheads, Billy’s were dorks, etc. Each of the Rangers had a mom and dad while here Zack and Billy have single parents.

Power Rangers Villains

– Rita Repulsa was an evil alien sorceress who was locked in a space dumpster for ten thousand years until she was freed by astronauts. In the film she was in some kind of suspended animation at the bottom of the ocean. In both though, it’s the result of some unwitting humans that leads to her returning to wreck havoc. If only us humans could just leave well enough alone!

– In both the series and movie, Rita uses her staff to make her monsters grow to enormous size. She also does this with her cheesy catchphrase, “Make my monster grow!”

– When Rita is defeated and sent off to space, she drifts past the moon. Perhaps this is a hint to her setting up a base there, as she did in the original series?

– Much like in the series, Rita is in possession of the Green Ranger coin. In the series it’s never revealed exactly where she got it but here it was always her coin. This has now been touched on in the comics, although they aren’t in the movie continuity sadly.

– Goldar doesn’t bare much resemblance to his original series counterpart but, like the first episode, he’s the first monsters the Rangers fight in the Megazord.

– The putty patrollers were introduced in the very first episode of the series and were made out of a special clay Finster had lying around the moon base. In the film they were basically golems, made out of whatever material Rita could get her hands on.

– An interesting detail, when Zordon is training the team to fight them, he mentions to aim for their chest area. Season two of MMPR introduced Lord Zedd’s “Z Putties” which could only be destroyed if the giant z on their chest was touched. That sound lame? Yeah, it kinda was. In one episode Tommy no joke poked one to death. Thankfully in the movie they aren’t quite that easy to defeat.

Power Rangers Movie Zords

– As the Rangers first roll out, the side tracking shot of them running is a near carbon copy of a similar shot that was used in the original Megazord formation sequence. Director Dean Israelite said this wasn’t intentional but that, “subconsciously it probably was.”

–  As that Zord sequence happens, the Power Rangers: The Movie theme blares. Recorded by The Power Rangers Orchestra, this song was adapted from the original theme song by Ron Wasserman. 

–  Billy is the one who coins the name “Megazord” in the film while in the original series it was a term first spoken by Zordon.

Power Rangers Movie Story

– While the movie’s plot is mostly original, several sequences are directly taken from the first episode of MMPR, “Day of the Dumpster.” The scene where the Rangers reject Zordon’s offer of the power and leave is right out of that episode, down to Jason hesitating before joining the others.

– The movie continues the series theme of working together being the ultimate lesson for every Power Rangers team to learn. Yeah it’s simple, but it’s Power Rangers.

The Universe

– From the first few seconds of the movie we get a huge revelation that Zordon used to be the Red Ranger. While this never happened in the series, it was hinted that Zordon’s soldiers had battled in the fight against evil. In “Green With Evil Part 2”, we see a flashback of an unmorphed soldier fighting one of Rita’s monsters.

– The Zeo Crystal is the source of power Rita desperately wants (even more than Krispy Kreme!). In the film it’s stated that the there are Zeo Crystals in every planet. In the series, the Zeo Crystals’ origins were never explicitly stated but the Crystal (there’s only one) was brought to the moon by an ancient race from the M51 galaxy.

Without getting too deep into it (and believe me, I could write a whole essay on this), the Rangers had to split the Zeo Crystal into five sub crystals to keep it hidden from Master Vile. Zordon sent the sub cystals through holes in time to various locations throughout Earth’s history. The Rangers then later retrieved them as kids (because Power Rangers, shut up) and they gave them the power to become the Power Rangers Zeo team.

The inclusion of the Zeo Crystal here strongly hints at future installments in the movie franchise. Could the movie Rangers use the power of earth’s Zeo Crystal to upgrade their arsenal? With that power source available will they skip the Thunder and Ninja powers from seasons two and three respectively?

– While Zordon and Rita were basically aliens in the original series, the film explicitly shows they were alien Power Rangers. They aren’t the first in the franchise’s history. In season three, the Alien Rangers of Aquitar were introduced, as a sort of back up team while the main Rangers had temporarily become children. Other seasons included alien Power Rangers such as the Triforians in Zeo, Liarians in Turbo, Xyberians in Time Force, and many more.

– We don’t know exactly which races Zordon and Rita are supposed to be, nor if Zordon’s team were of the same race, but thanks to the movie press conference we know the language they were speaking. According to Elizabeth Banks, the Eltarian language was developed from scratch for the film, which Bryan Cranston could actually speak. Elizabeth Banks and Bill Hader simply learned it phonetically. In the series it was assumed Eltarians simply spoke English. 

– Numerous references are made to the morphin’ grid throughout the film. In the series the grid is a nebulous thing that pretty much changed whenever the writers needed it to. In season two Lord Zedd mentions the Grid is maintained by a balance between the forces of good and evil. In a Dino Thunder DVD extra it was a big rock. In Operation Overdrive it was a tunnel. Yeah, that thing makes no sense. 

– Zordon mentions that the Power Rangers were a “legion of warriors.” This is also true in the series, what with their being hundreds of Power Rangers. The comment also implies there’s a long history of Rangers before this current team, which also has precedent in the original series. The Alien Rangers of Aquitar, the Gold Ranger from Zeo, the Phantom Ranger in Turbo, Andros in Space, and so on.

That line opens up the possibilities for other Ranger teams to exist in this new movie universe.

Extra Bits

– During the end credits a remixed version of Snap!’s “The Power” plays. This original version of the song was used in commercials for the original Power Rangers movie and was featured on its soundtrack.

– While Rita is chomping down on some delicious Krispy Kreme doughnuts in the middle of the fight, you can hear Destiny Child’s “Survivor” playing over the sound system.

– Angel Grove is of course the city where the original series takes place in although it wasn’t a seaside town.

– While it isn’t clearly seen in the movie, the logo for Angel Grove High School is lifted directly from the original show. No word on if their school song is still “Here we fly at Angel Grove High.”

– As Jason’s dad speeds through the streets of Angel Grove he mentions, “Cross section of Mariner Bay and Reefside!” These street names are the city names in Lightspeed Rescue and Dino Thunder respectively. Other street names not glimpsed in the film but revealed in behind the scenes shots include Silver Hills from Time Force and Amber Beach from Dino Charge.

– When Billy first hears about the powers, he wonders if they’ll be “like Iron Man or Spider-Man?” This is a huge reach, but did you know Marvel and Power Rangers have a history? Not only have they both been owned by Disney (Power Rangers no longer is) but also in the 70’s Marvel worked with the creators of Japanese Power Rangers (Super Sentai). Stan Lee actually wanted to bring Super Sentai over here in much the same way Haim Saban eventually did but couldn’t get any traction.

– The mountain where much of the movies action takes place is heavily reminiscent of how often the original series would shoot as Vasquez Rocks. Looks like rock formations and Power Rangers go hand in hand.

– In one shot at Trini’s house, if you look closely, you can see an original series Putty figure. In another you can see Finister and Squatt figures. We’ll choose not to read too far into those.

Did you spot any other easter eggs? Let me know in the comments and if it checks out, I’ll update the piece and give you a shout out!

Thanks for reading!

Shamus Kelley is a pop culture/television writer and official Power Rangers expert. Follow him on Twitter! Read more articles by him here!